The present invention relates to exercise methods and apparatus and more particularly, to exercise equipment which facilitates exercise through a curved path of motion.
Exercise equipment has been designed to facilitate a variety of exercise motions. For example, treadmills allow a person to walk or run in place; stepper machines allow a person to climb in place; bicycle machines allow a person to pedal in place; and other machines allow a person to skate and/or stride in place. Yet another type of exercise equipment has been designed to facilitate relatively more complicated exercise motions and/or to better simulate real life activity. Such equipment typically uses some sort of linkage assembly to convert a relatively simple motion, such as circular, into a relatively more complex motion, such as elliptical. Some examples of such equipment may be found in United States patents which are disclosed in an Information Disclosure Statement submitted herewith.
Exercise equipment has also been designed to facilitate full body exercise. For example, reciprocating cables or pivoting arm poles have been used on many of the equipment types discussed in the preceding paragraph to facilitate contemporaneous upper body and lower body exercise. Some examples of such equipment may be found in United States patents which are disclosed in an Information Disclosure Statement submitted herewith.
The present invention may be seen to provide a novel linkage assembly and corresponding exercise apparatus suitable for linking circular motion to relatively more complex, generally elliptical motion. In one embodiment, for example, a support member is pivotally mounted to a frame, and a force receiving member is movably mounted on the support member. A roller is rotatably mounted on a crank to support an opposite end of the support member and pivot the support member up and down in response to rotation of the crank. The force receiving member is linked to the crank in such a manner that movement of the force receiving member back and forth along the support member is linked to rotation of the crank. Thus, as the crank rotates, the linkage assembly constrains the force receiving member to travel through a generally elliptical path, having a relatively longer major axis and a relatively shorter minor axis. Moreover, the linkage is such that the major axis is longer than the effective diameter of the crank.
In another embodiment, for example, a roller is rotatably mounted on a crank and disposed between a force receiving member and a support member. Rotation of the crank causes the members to pivot up and down relative to the frame and the foot supporting member to move back and forth relative to the support member. The roller may be provided with a first diameter and/or gear set to engage the force receiving member and a second diameter and/or gear set to engage the support member. Such a linkage may be used to move the force receiving member through a range of motion having a dimension longer than the effective crank diameter.
In another respect, the present invention may be seen to provide a novel linkage assembly and corresponding exercise apparatus suitable for linking reciprocal motion to relatively more complex, generally elliptical motion. In either of the foregoing embodiments, for example, a handle member may be pivotally connected to the frame; and a link may be interconnected between the force receiving member and a discrete, relatively lower portion of the handle member. As the force receiving member moves through its generally elliptical path, the handle member pivots back and forth relative to the frame member.
In yet another respect, the present invention may be seen to provide a novel linkage assembly and corresponding exercise apparatus suitable for adjusting the angle of the generally elliptical path of motion relative to a horizontal surface on which the apparatus rests. In any of the foregoing embodiments, for example, the support member may be pivotally mounted to a first frame member, and/or the force receiving member may be pivotally mounted to a pivoting handle member, either of which may be locked in one of a plurality of positions along a post. An increase in the elevation of the pivot axis, results in a relatively more strenuous, xe2x80x9cuphillxe2x80x9d exercise motion.